Red Lentil and Turmeric Soup
Founder / Chef / Everyone’s Best Friend
Andy Hay
Welcome to my kitchen. I hope to inspire you to grow as a home cook!
If you’re looking for an easy meal to help get your gut health back in shape, this Red Lentil and Turmeric Soup might be it. Packed with warm, smoky spices, soft wilted greens and tender veggies. I might be making this one all year round.
Red Lentil and Turmeric Soup – Building a base.
I’m going to sound like a broken record here, but to make a good soup you have to have a solid base.
Building a base of flavour means you give your dish every opportunity to taste amazing.
We want to see colour on those onions and garlic (not burnt), we want those spices to bloom and develop.
Adding ginger to the pot and cooking it out, you get a rounder ginger that goes so well with sweet potato and cumin.
If you added the spices into a large pot of liquid, they wouldn’t be as distinct, strong and flavourful.
Red Lentil and Turmeric Soup – More Turmeric.
A lot of you most likely have a jar of turmeric in your cupboard, but don’t know what to do with it.
It stains your fingers bright yellow (not to mention your tupperware) and has a unique flavour profile.
What you might not know is the insane health benefits it has as an ingredient. Many people believe it has great anti- inflammatory side effects, while others say it’s great for liver health.
Regardless of what it does for us, it is a great way to add deep colour and a mild earthy- sweetness to any dish.
Cooking with lentils.
I love cooking with lentils. I always seem to have a massive jar of them laying around at all times, and for good reason.
They are a fantastic addition to a ton of soups and stews. Best part is how easy they are to cook.
Think of lentils kind of like pasta. They don’t need an exact amount of water to be absorbed like rice. The best way to cook a lentil is to boil it in a large pot of water (or soup) until tender.
When we cook our lentils in the soup, they absorb all of that flavour and spice, giving you a more flavourful and undiluted dish!
Other recipes to check out!
If you liked the sound of this meal, here are a few other recipes to check out!
Ingredients:
- 2 Yellow Onions diced
- 2 Garlic Cloves minced
- 2 inch Ginger minced
- 2 Carrots peeled and diced
- 3 Celery Stalks diced
- 1 Sweet Potato diced
- 2 tsp Cumin
- 1 1/2 tbsp Turmeric
- 2 tsp Smoked Paprika
- 1 1/2 tsp Kosher Salt
- 1 tsp Black Pepper
- 1 tbsp Tomato Paste
- 4 cups Veggie Stock
- 2 cups Water
- 1 cup Dried Red Lentils
- 2 cups Kale chopped
- 1 cups Diced Tomato
- 1/2 Lemon
Instructions:
- Into a pot set over medium heat, add in 2 tbsp of olive oil. Once heated add in 2 diced onions, 2 minced garlic cloves and 2 inches of minced ginger. Allow your aromatics to cook down for about 2 min.
- Next we want to add in 2 diced carrot, 3 diced celery stalks and 1 diced sweet potato. Mix well.
- Add in 2 tsp of cumin, 1 ½ tbsp of turmeric, 2 tsp of smoked paprika, 1 1/2 tsp of kosher salt and 1 tsp of black pepper. Give that a mix and allow your spices to bloom. Cook for 2-3 min.
- Next add 1 tbsp of tomato paste along with 4 cups of veggie stock and 2 cups of water. Give that a good mix. Add in 1 cup of red lentils. Let that bubble away for 15 – 20 min or until your lentils are soft.
- Once your lentils are cooked, add in about 2 cups of shredded kale, 1 cup of diced tomatoes and about ½ a lemon juiced. Give that a stir and season with kosher salt and black pepper.
Andy Hay
Andy is the founder of ECK, Chef, and let’s admit it… the reason you’re here. He taught himself to cook, and it all paid off when he secured his spot in the season 5 Finale of Master Chef Canada. Now, Andy uses his big energy to showcase recipes that actually make people want to cook. His brand was built on butter and East Coast charm, and Andy’s kept that same energy ever since. Off-camera, you’ll find him doing what started it all: cooking for his two daughters, wife and the people he loves.
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this is a great soup to make on a cold day. I could not find my turmeric, so I added Garam Masala
Used spinach instead of kale. The mix of spices is great.
Love those swaps—garam masala adds such cozy depth, and spinach works perfectly in place of kale. Totally agree, this is the ultimate cold-weather soup. Thanks for sharing your take on it!
Made this soup and it was delicious!!
Easy and delicious is a winning combo in my books! Thanks for trying this one, Marta!
(Think I left the stars off my original review. Five stars! )
This was a wonderfully hearty soup with a fabulous aroma and flavor. I didn’t have any kale, so left that out, but will def include (or spinach) the next time. Highly recommend, thanks for the recipe!
Thank you so much, Rita—and those five stars mean a lot! So glad you enjoyed the soup, even without the greens this time. Spinach or kale will both be great adds next round. Appreciate you making it and sharing the love
Absolutely delicious. This is a keeper for sure!
Glad you loved this one, Gina!
This soup is so damn good! Already part of the rotation. Great for a chilly fall/winter night 🩵